


you should see me in a crown

by ac19



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Devoted Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Emperor Kylo Ren, Empress Rey (Star Wars), F/M, Force Bond (Star Wars), Inappropriate Use of the Force, Kylo Ren and Rey Are Not Related, Post-Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Protective Kylo Ren, Protective Rey (Star Wars), Supreme Leader Kylo Ren
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-03
Updated: 2021-01-03
Packaged: 2021-03-13 07:13:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28524507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ac19/pseuds/ac19
Summary: Post TLJAfter Snoke’s death, Rey thought the bond between her and Kylo would be gone. But it wasn’t. The bond continues to bring them together. Rey begins to realize that maybe her true purpose doesn’t lie with the Resistance… It lies with him. The man who’s supposed to be her sworn enemy becomes the person she can’t bear to live without.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 5
Kudos: 32





	you should see me in a crown

It's been two weeks since she was face to face with him. It’s been two weeks since he held out his hand for her to take. It’s been two weeks since he offered her the whole galaxy. It’s been two weeks since she wanted to say yes.

But no matter how much she wanted to, she couldn’t justify abandoning her friends. She couldn’t abandon the Resistance. She was their only hope. She was the last Jedi, and Kylo Ren was supposed to be her sworn enemy. He was the new Supreme Leader of the First Order, and she was the face of the organization sworn to defeat it. She was supposed to hate him. He had taken her prisoner and invaded her thoughts. She had watched him murder his father... So why couldn't she hate him?

* * *

When news that the Resistance destroyed the _Supremacy_ and got away at the Battle of Crait spread throughout the galaxy, recruitment spread like wildfire. Lifeforms from all the far reaches of the galaxy wanted to join their cause against the tyrannical might of the First Order.

Rey saw the influx of incoming volunteers arrive on their new base on Ajan Kloss every day. Mostly, she saw young people, kids really, arriving at the base with a smile on their face and a wave of electricity and excitement surrounding them. She watched as they moved into the small Resistance bunks with only a single bag of belongings in tow.

She wondered how many of them grew up like her, or if anyone grew up like her, really. How many of them grew up without parents? How many of them grew up with survival as the only thing on their minds? How many of them were searching for a purpose in life? For belonging?

But most of all, Rey wondered what their motivations were for joining the Resistance?

Ever since the moment she shared with Kylo only two short weeks ago, she had been asking herself that same question.

_It's time to let old things die._

Why was she even here in the first place? Why was she so loyal to the Resistance? 

Finn, Poe, Rose… They all had their motivations for being here. Finn was a former stormtrooper. He knew first hand the atrocities of the First Order. Poe’s parents were members of the Rebellion. It was all he knew. Rose’s sister was killed by the First Order. For her, this fight was personal.

But Rey? What was her place? Her purpose?

_You have no place in this story._

A scavenger from the deserts of Jakku. She was nobody.

_You’re nobody. But not to me._

Those words were burned inside her memory. She was nobody. A nobody girl from a junkyard planet. But not to him…

* * *

It was just another day for Rey. She woke up, and she trained. BB-8 was always at her side. Sometimes Leia would make an appearance and share some of what Luke had taught her. She wasn't there today, though — probably too busy dealing with the new recruits.

After training, Rey went to the caf for lunch where she sat at a table alone. All her friends were off on "important" missions — missions that she wasn't allowed to go on. Something about not wanting to jeopardize her life... the life of the last Jedi.

While she was upset about being forbidden from going on missions, she wasn't upset about her lack of company at the lunch table. That feeling of loneliness was familiar to her. It was something she hadn't experienced in a while, ever since joining the Resistance.

_You're not alone._

After lunch, Rey spent the rest of the day in the hangar bay repairing broken ships. The monotony of her task at hand brought the memories back.

It's been four weeks now. Four weeks since her encounter with the mighty Kylo Ren.

 _We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy_. 

He had offered her the galaxy, and she had turned it down in favor of repairing ships that weren't even worth fixing. She couldn't lie and say that his offer wasn't tempting, but it wasn't because of the power. She had never dreamt of having any kind of power let alone the power to rule the entire galaxy. She dreamt of her parents returning to Jakku to claim her, and after finally realizing that dream would never come true, she dreamt of finally finding people who would love her.

But hadn't she found that in her friends? She had been through a hell of a lot with Finn. And Poe and Rose, they had welcomed her with open arms... Considering the short amount of time they had known each other they had grown close... But then she thought of him, and couldn't help but feel like her friends didn't really know her... The true her... Like _he_ did.

 _But he was a monster_. She had to keep reminding herself of that. He had massacred millions, maybe even trillions. Destroyed planets, whole systems even! But was that really him? Was that really what he wanted? Or was it Snoke?

In her heart, she hoped for the latter. But now that Snoke was gone, she had no way of finding out. With Snoke gone, the bond was broken. She wouldn’t be able to communicate with him anymore.

Her mind went back to her time on Ahch-To. When the Force bonded them together. She offered him her hand and he took it. Why didn’t she take his?

It had all happened so fast. His offer. She was shocked. She didn’t know what to make of it, so she did what her instincts told her to do. She ran.

_Please don’t go this way._

_No, no, no. You’re still holding on. Let go!_

Holding on to what? Let go of what? The past? Was this his way of reaching out to her? Was he looking for forgiveness for his sins of the past?

Reflecting on that moment, Rey wished she had more time to consider his offer.

_They were filthy junk traders who sold you off for drinking money. They’re dead in a pauper’s grave in the Jakku desert. You have no place in this story. You come from nothing. You’re nothing. But not to me._

No one cared about her. Not even her parents. Her friends cared about her. But in the back of her mind, she wondered about her value in the eyes of the Resistance. Did they care for her out of compassion or because they needed something from her? Her strength in the Force was what kept the Resistance going. She was their only hope. They didn’t care for her because they had to, they cared for her because they needed her. She was nothing but a pawn in the galaxy’s game of chess.

But Kylo… Ben… he didn’t need anything from her. He wanted her. He was the one offering her something. The galaxy. To rule by his side.

_Join me. Please._

She shook those thoughts out of her mind. She couldn’t bear those memories right now. 

But was he right? She wasn’t allowed to go on missions. She was confined to being the glorified maintenance crew and occasional Jedi for the Resistance, when she knew in her heart she could be doing so much more. The Force had given her a gift, and the Resistance wasn’t allowing her to reach her full potential. 

But surely, she couldn’t do that with the First Order either. At its core, it was an authoritarian regime whose only purpose was to gain total domination over the galaxy. They weren’t looking to bring peace or good to the galaxy. All they wanted was power.

That’s why she couldn’t join Kylo… Ben… Whoever he was. Not four weeks ago. Not now. Not ever.

* * *

The Resistance didn’t have the luxury of running water in the bunks. They had sonic showers where she could get somewhat clean after a long day of work. Rey had left the caf early, where all the other Resistance fighters were currently having dinner, so the sonics were completely empty. She was thankful for the peace and quiet since her friends had just returned from their various missions are were over eagerly regaling the group of their adventures.

After washing up. Rey went back to her room to change into the same clothes she always wore. Dark grey pants, a white tank top, a black tunic, a dark grey wrap around her bodice, and a pair of boots. She had three pairs of them now. In different colors, even. It was more than anything she ever had on Jakku. She had the Resistance to thank for that.

Her room was small. You could barely take five steps without running into a wall. But she was thankful she had it all to herself. The new recruits had to share. Two per room. It wasn't much, but anything was better than living in an old AT-AT Walker.

Both the ceilings and walls were painted a dull shade of grey. A small twin sized bed laid in the corner of the room. A single small pillow and grey bed sheets were standard issue. Small cabinets were placed adjacent to the bed so she could store some of her belongings in them. On one side were the few clothes she had and on the other lay the ancient Jedi texts she stole from Ahch-To.

She hadn’t gotten the chance to open one up yet. She was always either too tired or too busy. But she decided that today was going to be the perfect day to read one. She needed validation for choosing to remain with the Resistance. Validation for assuming the role of Resistance’s beacon of hope, the last Jedi. Validation for abandoning Ben after he begged her to join him.

She picked up the first book in the stack and laid down in her bed to read it. It was titled the _Chronicles of Brus-bu_.

She opened the first page and realized the text was written in a language she had never heard of. She should’ve figured. Ancient texts meant ancient dead languages.

 _Perhaps C-3PO could translate for me_ , she thought.

A knock on her door startled her, and her thoughts were lost.

“Rey,” she heard Finn’s voice through the door, “You’ve got to come see this.”

* * *

_Join me. Please._

Kylo Ren had begged. He never begged. But this nobody scavenger girl from Jakku brought him to his knees.

He wanted her. He wanted her by his side. He wanted her to rule with him. He wanted her as his Empress. Kriff, he just wanted _her_. 

He had seen it. A vision. After killing Snoke. It was beautiful and as clear as day.

She didn’t turn. But neither did he. The dark and light sides of the Force weren’t at odds. Everything was grey. It was balanced.

So after ascending to the role of Supreme Leader, Kylo Ren’s goal was no longer to rule the galaxy by force. He wanted to bring balance to the galaxy. But he couldn’t do it alone. He needed _her._ Without her, there was no balance, there was only darkness. But it went both ways. She couldn’t do it alone either. Yes, she thought the Resistance was a worthy cause, but there was still no balance. There was only light. He saw it. They were meant to be together in every sense of the world. They were a _dyad_. Two halves of one whole. They were the galaxy’s only hope.

_Join me. Please._

He thought back to that moment. When he asked her to stay with him. To rule with him. He begged her, but she still turned him down.

The more he reflected, the more he saw it. How stupid he was. Of course, she said no. She had seen him do terrible things, kill his own father… She couldn’t trust him.

_We can rule together and bring a new order to the galaxy._

He was offering her a place in the First Order when he knew that wasn’t where she belonged. He should have framed it differently, said it differently. Yes, he wanted to bring order, but through balance, not violence. He was sure if she saw his intentions, she would have joined him in a heartbeat.

But she didn’t trust him. And truth be told, he didn’t completely trust himself.

If he was to gain Rey’s trust, he couldn’t convince her with words. Words meant nothing. He needed to convince her with actions. And his actions on Crait didn’t help his cause.

He was just so caught up in his anger. He was angry at his mother for abandoning him as a child, leaving him to nannies and droids because her work was just “too important.” He was angry at his father for never staying. He was angry at both of his parents for sending him to Luke. He was angry at Snoke for invading his mind. He was angry at Luke for trying to kill him in his sleep. But most of all, he was angry that Rey hadn’t accepted his offer. He wasn’t angry at her, though. He was angry at himself. He didn’t deserve her trust. He didn’t deserve _her_. At least, not yet.

* * *

“Sir, uh… Supreme Leader,” General Hux caught Kylo’s attention. He was still skeptical about Kylo’s ascension to power, but that was a matter for another day.

“What?” Kylo lashed out.

“Now’s the time to strike. The Resistance is on the run. We can destroy them,” Hux explained.

Kylo raised his hand and said simply, “No.”

“Excuse me, sir?” Hux was astonished.

“You heard me,” Kylo answered.

“But sir…”

Kylo raised his hand once more and clenched his fist to put Hux into a force chokehold.

“Did you not hear me?” he spat out, “I said no. There’s no reason to waste our resources on them. They’re highly crippled. There at most 50 of them left. They’re not a threat to us. Do not question my authority.”

He released Hux from his hold and threw him across the room, just because he could.

“Y-y-yes, Supreme Leader,” Hux managed to say, still desperate for oxygen.

“Good.”

Kylo couldn’t stand Hux. In fact, he hated him. But the generals and commanders were loyal to him. He needed to keep Hux around a little bit longer. But just because Hux stood in his way didn’t mean Kylo couldn’t achieve his true goal. Balance. And _Rey._


End file.
